Holder for skis and ski poles



Feb. 4,- 1969 D. H. MURRAY 3,425,567

, HOLDER FOR SKIS AND SKI POLES Filed May 12. 1966 Sheet of 2 /3 v l3 I /2 I2 I I I7 5 Q I I; L|1| fi O I l3 l3 7- INVENTOR. DONALD H. MURRAY T. w BY V 7/Az4/F'fiZAQ Feb. 4, 1969 v D. H. MURRAY 3,425,567

I HOLDER FOR SKIS AND sxi POLES Filed May 12. 1966 Sheet 2 of 2 /e I I l I i; a a? I I 25 i |"i i; P ui. Hi: i 39 lNl/ENTOR l6 l0 v o'o/wuo 'H. MURRAY United States Patent Office 3,425,567 HOLDER FOR SKIS AND SKI POLES Donald H. Murray, S. 164 Division St., Spokane, Wash. 99204 Filed May 12, 1966, Ser. No. 549,593 U.S. Cl. 211-60 Int. Cl. A47f 7/00, /08

2 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to a hook or bracket to hold skis and ski poles for storage or display purposes.

The unique configuration of a pair of skis, combined with the somewhat unwieldly length normally involved, makes storage particularly difiicult, and presents problems in providing secure temporary storage at home or in areas of public accommodation. The present apparatus provides a relatively simple hook or bracket for holding a pair of skis properly and for holding the related pair of ski poles, the holder being designed for temporary storage or display of the equipment, The holder is available for home or commercial use, and for application Where secure storage is desirable or essential.

Summary and objects of the invention The invention set out herein basically comprises a wall support for a pair of skis and ski poles utilizing a bracket having an upright rear surface and forwardly open vertical recesses, each recess being complementary to a ski pole. Laterally spaced upright Walls protrude outwardly perpendicular to the rear surface of the bracket at locations adjacent to the recesses, these wall sections facing opposite to one another. The bracket is mounted by means of apertures formed through the rear wall in open communication with the recesses. Flanges are provided on the bracket along the outside edge of each recess to overlap the upright wall of the bracket and prevent initial removal of the ski poles prior to removal of skis mounted on the bracket.

It is a first object of this invention to provide a holder for mounting a pair of skis and poles on a wall so that the skis and poles are supported in a position which will not damage the skis or poles by bending them or subjecting them to undue stress.

Another object of this invention is to provide a holder for skis and poles to which the skis can be securely fastened to prevent theft of the equipment and intentional removal of the bracket.

Another object of this invention is to provide a relatively inexpensive bracket for holding skis, adapted to mass marketing and production techniques and designed to provide heat storage of skis and poles wherever desired.

These and further objects will be evident from the following disclosure, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which illustrate One preferred form of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a front view of the bracket showing its intended usage, the bracket being shown while supporting a pair of skis and ski poles;

3,425,567 Patented Feb. 4, 1969 FIGURE 2 is a side view of the apparatus shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a front view of the bracket, showing a pair of ski poles supported thereby;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken through the bracket and equipment substantially along line 44 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is a side view of the bracket shown in FIGURE 4 with no equipment being illustrated; and

FIGURE 6 is a front view of the bracket as shown in FIGURE 4 with no equipment being illustrated.

Referring to the drawings, the holder is shown in the form of a wall bracket generally designated by the numeral 10. It is designed to be fixed to a wall at approximately the mid-position of a pair of skis 11 and poles 12. The skis are adapted to be held in back to back positions against the bracket by means of upper and lower clips or straps 13. Both the skis 11 and poles 12 are shown with their lower ends resting on a floor surface. When this is not advisable, a horizontal wall bracket or shelf can be provided to support the lower ends of the stored skis and poles.

The details of the bracket are best seen in FIGURES 4 through 6. In these figures, the bracket is shown constructed of extruded metal in two identical sections. The two sections are mounted in back to back positions to form an integral hollow member.

It is to be understood that the details of the construction, including the two-piece extruded metal combination, are only by way of example. The bracket can be extruded as a single piece from any suitable metal or plastic material. It also can be fabricated of metal or wood. It does not have to be substantially hollow as indicated and can be made of solid material if so desired.

The bracket 10 basically comprises a rear wall 14 having an upright back surface 15. The plane surface 15 serves as a wall mounting surface, being in direct abutment with a vertical Wall surface when the bracket is properly mounted.

The bracket 10 has forwardly extending wall sections 16 formed at each end of the back wall 14. These terminate in forwardly and inwardly protruding flanges 17. At each side, the bracket has substantially circular recesses formed therein, the recesses being forwardly open and being complementary to the cross sectional configuration of the ski poles which they are to position. The forward opening to each of these recesses, which are bounded by partial arcuate wall sections 18, are slightly restricted as shown at 20.

Inwardly and forwardly adjacent to the recesses formed by wall sections 18 are forwardly directed wall sections .21 which include oppositely facing surfaces 22 against which the lower edges of the skis are supported. The surface 22 terminates at the outer section of the bracket in oppositely directed flanges 23. The flanges 23 define the outer limits of the surfaces 22, the distance between the inner end of each surface 22 and its outer end being complementary to the width of ski 11 at its mid-section.

It is to be noted that the somewhat restricted openlng forward of wall 18 will permit the entry of poles 12, since the poles 12 generally taper downwardly. The individual poles 12 can be inserted at an area of reduced diameter and then moved downwardly to the position as illustrated in FIGURE 3. It also is to be noted that the surfaces 22 are inwardly adjacent to the restricted opening 20 in order that the skis 11 and associated bindings will partially block the respective recess 18 adjacent to them. This blocking action serves to prevent removal of poles 12 prior to removal of the skis 11. This is important when the bracket is being used to secure the skis against theft. In such instances a cable clamp can be used to hold the skis on the bracket.

The bracket illustrated can be mounted on a wall in any desired manner. For convenience, mounting apertures 24 are shown formed through the back wall 14 in alignment with front apertures 25 formed at the rear of the walls 18 which define the recesses for the ski poles. This permits a screw driver or other tool to be inserted through the respective apertures 25 for access to a fastening member inserted through the respective apertures 24.

The extruded members illustrated are shown attached to one another by means of a rivet 26 which holds recessed wall sections 27 intermediate the respective edges of surface 22. However, other suitable means for attaching the two sections in back to back positions can obviously be substituted.

The bracket provides efiicient storage of skis and poles in a minimum amount of wall space and is of simple construction so as to require minimum expense for production, In actual use, the space required is less than a six inch by six inch area of floor space. The bracket can be proportioned so as to universally fit skis and poles of all sizes, accommodation for differing lengths being available by choice of the vertical position at which the bracket is mounted or by the use of a suitably positioned bottom shelf bracket for supporting the lower ends of the skis and poles.

The bracket is suitable for holding the skis and poles in a home, hotel or motel, a ski lodge, a dormitory, a ski shop, a retail store, a rental equipment area, etc. It can be used in any location where the temporary or permanent storage of skis is desired. The skis can be held by releasable clips at the upper and lower ends respectively of the stored skis, or can be locked by a conventional cable lock wrapped about the skis and engaged with the bracket.

The height or thickness of the bracket is preferably about one inch, and the wall areas of the bracket should be approximately one sixteenth of an inch in thickness. The bracket can be made of plated strap steel, extruded aluminum or extruded or molded plastic materials, die cast metal or fabricated wood.

The bracket should be located on a suporting wall several inches above the ski toepiece. The clips 13 can be made of rubber or plastic, and suitable traps or other clamping devices can be substituted. The skis can be clipped to one another prior to mounting them on the bracket, the center portions of the skis being temporarily spread to allow them to slip over the slight flanges 23 for proper placement. The lateral spacing between the surfaces 22 should be proper for maintaining the correct camber in the individual skis. If more lateral space is required, spacing blocks can be mounted outwardly against the surfaces 22.

The holder described above provides a neat storage arrangement for maintaining skis and poles in an upright position so that the skis are safely supported and the proper ski camber maintained. Minor modifications in the structural features illustrated will be obvious to one skilled in this art, and it is to be understood that such changes are encompassed within the attached claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A wall support for a pair of skis and ski poles, comprising:

a bracket having an upright rear surface, said bracket being provided with a pair of forwardly open vertical recesses formed thereon at its respective sides in transversely spaced positions, each recess being complementary to a ski pole, said bracket being a vertically open hollow member and said upright rear surface being formed as a rear upright wall across the back of the bracket;

laterally spaced upright walls protruding outwardly in a perpendicular position relative to said rear surface, said walls being adjacent to the recesses formed on said bracket, said wall sections facing to the respective sides of the bracket opposite to one another;

said rear upright wall being provided with horizontal apertures formed therethrough at each side thereof;

and the bracket being further provided with apertures formed therethrough in open communication with the recesses formed on said bracket and located in coaxial alignment with the apertures formed through said rear upright wall to provide access for securing said bracket to a wall surface by means engaged through the apertures formed on the bracket rear wall.

2. A wall support for a pair of skis and ski poles, comprising:

a bracket having an upright rear surface, said bracket being provided with a pair of forwardly open vertical recesses formed thereon at its respective sides in transversely spaced positions, each recess being complementary to a ski pole;

laterally spaced upright walls protruding outwardly in perpendicular positions relative to said rear surface, said walls being adjacent to the recesses formed on said bracket, said wall sections facing to the respective sides of the bracket oppositely to one another;

forwardly and inwardly directed flanges formed on said bracket along the outside edge of each of the recesses formed therein, said flanges slightly overlapping the respective upright walls of said bracket.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS ROY D. FRAZIER, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

